II 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 761 

To improve the acquisition workforce through the establishment of an acquisition management fellows program and a leadership development training 

program, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 7 (legislative day, APRIL 5), 2011 

Ms. COLLINS (for herself, Mr. AKAKA, and Mrs. MCCASKILL) introduced the 

following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 

Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

A BILL 

To improve the acquisition workforce through the establishment of an acquisition management fellows program and 

a leadership development training program, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Acquisition Workforce 

5 Improvement Act of 2011’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. GOVERNMENT-WIDE ACQUISITION MANAGEMENT 

2 FELLOWS PROGRAM. 

3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF ACQUISITION MANAGEMENT

4 FELLOWS WORKFORCE PROGRAM.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 17 of title 41, 

6 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

7 end the following new section: 

8 ‘‘§ 1714. Government-wide acquisition management 

9 fellows program 

10 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—Not later than 

11 180 days after the date of the enactment of the Acquisi12 tion Workforce Improvement Act of 2011, the Adminis13 trator shall establish a government-wide acquisition man14 agement fellows program (in this section referred to as 

15 the ‘program’) for the purpose of investing in the long16 term improvement and sustained excellence of the Federal 

17 acquisition workforce. 

18 ‘‘(b) OBJECTIVES.—The objectives of the program 

19 shall be as follows: 

20 ‘‘(1) To develop a new generation of acquisition 

21 leaders with government-wide perspective, skills, and 

22 experience. 

23 ‘‘(2) To recruit individuals with the outstanding 

24 academic merit, ethical value, business acumen, and 

25 leadership skills to meet the acquisition needs of the 

26 Federal Government. 


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1 ‘‘(3) To offer, upon completion of the program, 

2 opportunities for advancement, competitive com3 pensation, and leadership opportunities at various 

4 executive agencies. 

5 ‘‘(c) STRUCTURE.— 

6 ‘‘(1) CONTRACTS, GRANTS, AND COOPERATIVE

7 AGREEMENTS.—The Office of Federal Procurement 

8 Policy shall enter into contracts, grants, or coopera9 tive agreements with one or more qualified univer10 sities with demonstrated expertise in Federal Gov11 ernment acquisition. 

12 ‘‘(2) TRAINING.—The program shall consist of 

13 one academic year of full-time, on-campus training 

14 followed by two years of on-the-job and part-time 

15 training toward a Masters or equivalent graduate 

16 degree in related fields. 

17 ‘‘(3) CURRICULUM.—The curriculum of the pro18 gram shall include the following elements: 

19 ‘‘(A) Rotational assignments at three or 

20 more executive agencies covering all phases of 

21 the contract life cycle, from acquisition plan22 ning to contract formation and post-award ad23 ministration of contract types identified in part 

24 16 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and 


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1 including interagency contracts, contract cost 

2 and pricing, and negotiation techniques. 

3 ‘‘(B) All required non-agency-specific 

4 training courses necessary for basic contracting 

5 officer warrant as established by the Office of 

6 Federal Procurement Policy. 

7 ‘‘(C) Emphasis on transparency, account8 ability, and integrity in the public contracting 

9 process. 

10 ‘‘(D) Other necessary courses and edu11 cation as required by participating universities. 

12 ‘‘(4) PRIORITY FOR EMPLOYMENT.—To the ex13 tent permitted by law, the head of each executive 

14 agency shall give priority to graduates of the pro15 gram for purposes of hiring employees in the acqui16 sition field, based on performance during the pro17 gram and other qualifications, and shall compensate 

18 such graduates at an initial GS–12 level of the Gen19 eral Schedule, or equivalent, with the potential for a 

20 GS–13 level of compensation, or equivalent, upon 

21 one year of satisfactory performance. 

22 ‘‘(d) SIZE.—The total number of individuals entering 

23 the program each year may not exceed 200. There shall 

24 be at least 50 participants in the first year of the program, 


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1 100 participants in the second year, and 150 participants 

2 thereafter. 

3 ‘‘(e) ELEMENTS.—In carrying out the program, the 

4 Administrator shall— 

5 ‘‘(1) enter into one or more contracts, grants, 

6 or cooperative agreements with qualified universities 

7 having an expertise in Federal Government acquisi8 tion and the resources to administer the program 

9 independently; 

10 ‘‘(2) be responsible for the management and 

11 oversight of the overall program and for placement 

12 of individuals upon graduation; 

13 ‘‘(3) allow participating universities to select 

14 and to remove program participants in accordance 

15 with the established academic process for such grad16 uate degree programs; 

17 ‘‘(4) ensure that veterans (as that term is de18 fined in section 101(2) of title 38) are given priority 

19 as candidates for participation in the program; and 

20 ‘‘(5) periodically review the career development 

21 of the program participants upon placement and 

22 make necessary adjustments to the program to en23 sure the objectives are met. 

24 ‘‘(f) SERVICE AGREEMENT.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) COMMITMENT FOR FEDERAL SERVICE.—A 

2 person selected for participation in the program 

3 shall commit to employment with the Federal Gov4 ernment in the field of acquisition, following comple5 tion of the program, under such terms and condi6 tions as the Administrator considers appropriate to 

7 ensure the Federal Government receives proper re8 turn on investment. Such employment shall be for a 

9 term of not less than one year for each year in the 

10 program. 

11 ‘‘(2) REIMBURSEMENT OF FUNDS.—In cases of 

12 candidates who do not successfully complete the pro13 gram or do not fulfill the minimum service require14 ments, the candidates shall be required to reimburse 

15 the Federal Government for funds received under 

16 the program. 

17 ‘‘(g) OFPP ACQUISITION FELLOWS DEVELOPMENT

18 FUND.— 

19 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is hereby estab20 lished in the Treasury of the United States a fund 

21 to be known as the ‘OFPP Acquisition Fellows De22 velopment Fund’ (in this section referred to as the 

23 ‘Fund’). 

24 ‘‘(2) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts in the Fund 

25 shall be used for— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the establishment and operations of 

2 the program; 

3 ‘‘(B) the award of contracts, grants, or co4 operative agreements to cover expenses includ5 ing— 

6 ‘‘(i) tuition, books, materials, and 

7 other academic expenses; 

8 ‘‘(ii) room and board of students dur9 ing the time students are enrolled in the 

10 program; 

11 ‘‘(iii) expenses for travel as required 

12 by the program; 

13 ‘‘(iv) stipends; and 

14 ‘‘(v) other necessary expenses the Ad15 ministrator considers necessary. 

16 ‘‘(3) DEPOSITS TO FUND.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Fund shall con18 sist of amounts appropriated or otherwise made 

19 available to the Fund. 

20 ‘‘(B) TRANSFER.—The Administrator may 

21 transfer necessary amounts from the Acquisi22 tion Workforce Training Fund (AWTF) estab23 lished under section 1703(i) of this title to pro24 vide an initial deposit or to augment the Fund. 


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1 ‘‘(C) DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE PARTICI2 PATION.—If the Department of Defense elects 

3 to participate in the program, it shall provide 

4 necessary funds, commensurate to the share of 

5 participants it sponsors, from proceeds available 

6 pursuant to section 1703(i)(5) of this title or 

7 section 1705 of title 10.’’. 

8 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec9 tions at the beginning of such chapter is amended 

10 by adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘1714. Government-wide acquisition management fellows program.’’. 

11 (b) REPORTS.— 

12 (1) INITIAL REPORT.—Not later than 120 days 

13 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Ad14 ministrator shall submit to the appropriate congres15 sional committees a preliminary report on the pro16 gram, including a description of the program and 

17 the five-year budget needed to carry out the govern18 ment-wide acquisition management fellows program 

19 established under section 1714 of title 41, United 

20 States Code, as added by subsection (a). 

21 (2) ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than one year 

22 after the commencement of the program and annu23 ally thereafter, the Administrator shall submit to the 

24 appropriate congressional committees a report on 

25 the program. The report shall include— 


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1 (A) a description of the activities under the 

2 program, including the number of individuals 

3 who participated in the program and the train4 ing provided such individuals under the pro5 gram; 

6 (B) an assessment of the effectiveness of 

7 the program in meeting the objectives of the 

8 program, including the performance of each 

9 university administering the program; and 

10 (C) any recommendations for additional 

11 legislative or administrative action that the Ad12 ministrator considers appropriate in light of the 

13 program. 

14 (3) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT15 TEES DEFINED.—In this subsection, the term ‘‘ap16 propriate congressional committees’’ means— 

17 (A) the Committee on Homeland Security 

18 and Governmental Affairs and the Committee 

19 on Appropriations of the Senate; and 

20 (B) the Committee on Oversight and Gov21 ernment Reform and the Committee on Appro22 priations of the House of Representatives. 

23 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

24 are authorized to be appropriated for the OFPP Acquisi25 tion Fellows Development Fund the following amounts: 


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1 (1) For fiscal year 2012, $16,000,000. 

2 (2) For fiscal year 2013, $32,000,000. 

3 (3) For fiscal year 2014, and each fiscal year 

4 thereafter, $48,000,000. 

5 SEC. 3. LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT TRAINING PROGRAM. 

6 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF LEADERSHIP DEVELOP7 MENT TRAINING PROGRAM.— 

8 (b) ESTABLISHMENT OF TRAINING PROGRAM.—Not 

9 later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of 

10 this Act, Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy 

11 shall establish a leadership development training program 

12 for Federal employees focused on core leadership and ac13 quisition competencies. The purpose of the training pro14 gram shall be to foster the development of high performing 

15 individuals in the three core acquisition disciplines of con16 tracting, program management, and cost estimating to 

17 serve as future acquisition leaders. 

18 (c) OBJECTIVES.—The objectives of the program 

19 shall be as follows: 

20 (1) To develop a new generation of acquisition 

21 leaders in the three major acquisition disciplines cur22 rently in the Federal workforce in order to expand 

23 and improve the quality of the acquisition workforce. 

24 (2) To develop high performing Federal employ25 ees in the three major acquisition disciplines to proVerDate Mar 15 2010 05:04 Apr 09, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S761.IS S761

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1 vide opportunities for advancement into leadership 

2 positions. 

3 (3) To enhance the ability to foster networking 

4 and understanding among the three major acquisi5 tion disciplines to achieve desired acquisition out6 comes. 

7 (d) STRUCTURE.— 

8 (1) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT.—The Office of 

9 Federal Procurement Policy shall enter into coopera10 tive agreements with one or more institutions of 

11 higher learning as prescribed under Office of Man12 agement and Budget Circular A–102, ‘‘Grants and 

13 Cooperative Agreements with State and Local Gov14 ernments’’ to develop and implement the training 

15 program. 

16 (2) PARTICIPANTS.—The training program par17 ticipants shall be composed of an equal distribution 

18 of the three targeted acquisition disciplines. 

19 (3) PROGRAM SELECTION OFFICIAL.—The Di20 rector of the Federal Acquisition Institute shall be 

21 the program selection official. 

22 (4) TRAINING.—The program shall consist of 

23 18 months of academic classroom training. The par24 ticipants shall complete the training during normal 

25 duty hours, and shall remain at their current duty 


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1 station during any such hours not spent in training. 

2 Upon successful completion of the program, partici3 pants shall receive a Master’s Degree in Public Ad4 ministration with a concentration in Federal acquisi5 tion. 

6 (5) CURRICULUM.—The curriculum of the pro7 gram shall be developed by the partnering institution 

8 or institutions of higher learning and approved by 

9 the Director of the Federal Acquisition Institute. 

10 (e) SIZE.—The total number of individuals entering 

11 the pilot program shall be not less than 50. There shall 

12 be an equal composition of the three acquisition functions. 

13 (f) ELEMENTS.—In carrying out the program, the 

14 Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy shall— 

15 (1) enter into cooperative agreements with one 

16 or more institutions of higher learning to provide for 

17 the management and oversight of the training pro18 gram; and 

19 (2) collaborate with such institution or institu20 tions to develop learning objectives and to design 

21 classroom training to best meet the program objec22 tives. 

23 (g) SERVICE AGREEMENT.— 

24 (1) COMMITMENT FOR FEDERAL SERVICE.—A 

25 person selected for participation in the program 


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1 shall commit to employment for not less than 2 

2 years with the Federal Government in the field of 

3 acquisition, following completion of the program, 

4 under such terms and conditions as the Adminis5 trator for Federal Procurement Policy considers ap6 propriate to ensure the Federal Government receives 

7 proper return on investment. 

8 (2) REIMBURSEMENT OF FUNDS.—In cases 

9 where a participant does not complete the minimum 

10 employment commitment, the participant shall reim11 burse the Federal Government for a prorated share 

12 of the cost of the training, based on the proportion 

13 of the commitment that remains unfulfilled. 

14 (h) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts in the Acquisition 

15 Workforce Training Fund (AWTF) established under sec16 tion 1703(i) of title 41, United States Code, may be made 

17 available for the program and may be used for— 

18 (1) the establishment and operations of the pro19 gram, including planning and administration; 

20 (2) classroom training expenses, including— 

21 (A) tuition; 

22 (B) books; and 

23 (C) other necessary expenses the Adminis24 trator for Federal Procurement Policy considers 

25 necessary. 


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1 (i) REPORTS.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

3 the commencement of the training program, and 

4 semi-annually thereafter, the Administrator for Fed5 eral Procurement Policy shall submit to the appro6 priate congressional committees a report on the pro7 gram. 

8 (2) CONTENT.—The report required under 

9 paragraph (1) shall include— 

10 (A) a description of the activities under the 

11 training program, including the number of indi12 viduals who participated in the program and 

13 the training provided such individuals under the 

14 program; 

15 (B) an assessment of the effectiveness of 

16 the program in meeting the objectives of the 

17 program, including the performance of the 

18 partnering institution or institutions of higher 

19 learning; 

20 (C) recommendations for additional legisla21 tive or administrative action that the Adminis22 trator for Federal Procurement Policy considers 

23 appropriate in light of the program; and 


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1 (D) workforce data to support the return 

2 on investment, including retention rates and im3 provement in workforce quality. 

4 (3) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT5 TEES DEFINED.—In this subsection, the term ‘‘ap6 propriate congressional committees’’ means— 

7 (A) the Committee on Homeland Security 

8 and Governmental Affairs and the Committee 

9 on Appropriations of the Senate; and 

10 (B) the Committee on Oversight and Gov11 ernment Reform and the Committee on Appro12 priations of the House of Representatives. 

13 (j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

14 are authorized to be appropriated for the Leadership De15 velopment Training Program the following amounts: 

16 (1) For fiscal year 2012, $500,000. 

17 (2) For fiscal year 2013, $250,000. 

Æ 


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